Vision Statement
The GWC is committed to providing equitable access to writing resources and seeks to address the needs of our community regardless of ability, native language, country of origin, as well as the myriad commitments of students pursuing graduate study in a city like New York. As a Center, we are committed to growth and foresee our community expanding to one that incorporates a range of academic resources beyond writing, and more online resources that further our goal of equitable access and self-directed learning.
About Our Staff
The GWC staff is comprised of an Assistant Director, numerous Writing Fellows, the majority of whom are completing their doctoral work, and Communication Assistants. To learn more about our staff, consult their short biographies posted below:
Meredith (she/her)
Assistant Director, Graduate Student Life & Development
Meredith Schuman (she/her) has an MFA in Creative Writing from Brooklyn College, where she studied Poetry with Allen Ginsberg and Lou Asekoff. Her work has been published in several small literary journals including Mudfish and B City. She has a BA in Theater from Binghamton University and spent a semester at The Imperial College of London. She was an English Instructor at NYU Tandon School of Engineering for many years and served as Graduate ESL Program Director. Her experience includes teaching literature, expository and creative writing, and public speaking in various schools and centers, with a focus on adult ESL populations. She is an avid photographer, enthusiastic theater-goer, BBC binger, and obsessive knitter.
Emma (she/her)
GWC Assistant
Emma (she/her) is a masters student in the School Psychology program. She received her undergraduate degree from Roger Williams University in Bristol, Rhode Island, where she studied Psychology, with minors in Criminal Justice and Spanish. She worked as a Writing Tutor and a Peer Mentor at Roger Williams University. Emma coached a community volleyball team and played intramural volleyball as an undergraduate. She is a big concert-goer, enjoys reading Fantasy and some Romance, spending time with family and friends and traveling. Her favorite trip was to Iceland last summer!
Joanna (she/her)
GWC Assistant
Joanna (she/her) is a masters student in the Communication Sciences and Disorders program. She received her undergraduate degree in Speech, Language, Hearing Science at Temple University in Philadelphia where she worked as an Ambassador Coordinator for the College of Public Health, and a Research Assistant in the Speech, Language, and Brain Lab. She loves to work with all populations of individuals, but adults with aphasia, which is a neurogenic communication disorder, hold a special place in her heart. In her time off of school, Joanna substitutes as a paraprofessional in classrooms for children with ASD and other disabilities. Joanna loves to go thrifting, spend time with friends and family, hang out with her pitbull and tabby cat (Elsa and Marceline), binge crime shows, and take lots and lots of naps.
Kelly (she/her)
Writing Fellow
Joel (he/him)
Writing Fellow
Joel (he/him) is studying for an EdM in Language Use through the Applied Linguistics program at Teachers College. Most recently he was working as a full-time proofreader for the past six years, specializing in technical language. He has earned a BA from New York University in Linguistics, with minors in Music and Creative Writing, and an MA in Linguistics from the University of Hong Kong, writing a dissertation to document an endangered dialect of Cantonese. Overall he has lived overseas for 2 ½ years. Joel is fascinated in looking at language as a social construct, and recognizes the need to approach even age old questions with modern best practices. For fun, Joel plays video games, explores coffee shops around the city, and sings. His areas of specialization include technical aspects of writing like grammar and structure, writing for the social sciences, voice, and style.
Neha (she/her)
Writing Fellow
Neha (she/her) is a doctoral student at Teachers College, Columbia University. She is a Zankel Fellow and works with TCCS, providing math intervention across various grades, especially grades 7 and 8. She worked as a research assistant to the vice dean of teacher education, assisting in conducting a literature review on professional development schools. In the past year, she was a research assistant on a project focused on Civil Rights History in New York. Her primary role was to conduct a literature review on disability history in New York. Her expertise includes: writing an IRB, writing literature reviews, conducting interviews, coding qualitative data, and data analysis. She has taught over ten master's and undergraduate-level courses on inclusive education and disability at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. In addition, she has taught in-person, remote, and hybrid courses at the higher education level. Neha is a special educator from India who works with students with disabilities and advocates for the whole-class approach to teaching and learning. She incorporates her experiences and perspective from the Indian context in her work as a researcher and educator in the US. As a bilingual learner, she is passionate about working with teachers to create an inclusive space for bilingual learning with and without disabilities. In her free time, Neha likes to paint, try new recipes, and watch movies in different languages (with subtitles, of course!). You will also find Neha sleeping in till 10 am on the weekend and enjoying a hot cup of filter coffee while some old 80's music plays in the background!
Pascale (she/her)
GWC Writing Fellow
Pascale is an incoming doctoral student in the Education Policy & Social Analysis (EPSA) department where she will study sociology and education. As a Postsecondary Education Applied Research (PEAR) Fellow, Pascale is interested in studying the relationship between community college and workforce development programs, and income inequality. As the first person from her household to attend college, Pascale started her college journey at Queensborough Community College and holds a B.S. in Secondary English Education from New York University and an M.A. in Urban Education Policy from Brown University. After her undergraduate studies, Pascale served for two years as a high school English teacher in the South Bronx where she developed and implemented interdisciplinary curricula that drew connections between English Language Arts and the social studies, math and science disciplines. She credits her undergraduate training for her ability to teach reading and writing to students with differing degrees of proficiency, as well as those with special needs and/or for whom English is a second language. As a graduate student, Pascale published several briefs on educational topics with university, government and nonprofit partners. As a Writing Fellow, her strengths include academic writing, policy writing, research/literature reviews and qualitative analysis. In her free time, Pascale enjoys cooking, running and learning to quilt.
Pavita (She/Her)
Writing Fellow
Pavita (she/her) is a health education doctoral student in the Department of Health and Behavior Studies at Teachers College. During her studies, she hopes to explore narrative writing and storytelling as a health education modality. She has her Master in Public Health in Social and Behavioral Sciences from Yale University and a Bachelor of Arts in Gender & Sexuality Studies, Linguistics, and Child & Adolescent Mental Health from New York University. Outside of Teachers College, Pavita is the Executive Director of Girls Health Ed, an instructor at Johns Hopkins University, a freelance writer and editor, and the award-winning international bestselling author of To All the Magic in Me, a poetry collection on mental health, emotions, and self-care. Pavita's mission is to spread light, love, learning, and laughter and to make the world better and have fun doing it. She revels in travel, yoga, dance, creative arts, vegan cooking and baking, reading, Netflix, napping, and time with family and friends.